Vicky Pryce was still in love with Chris Huhne when she tried to end his
political career by telling a journalist he had made her take his speeding
points, a court heard today.

The reporter who broke the story said Miss Pryce was "very fragile" and "constantly on the verge of tears" as she claimed that her ex-husband had "pressurised" her into accepting the points for a 2003 speeding offence.

Isabel Oakeshott, political editor of The Sunday Times, said Miss Pryce felt she owed it to the public to expose the "true character" of Huhne, who was then a Cabinet Minister and had ambitions to be Liberal Democrat leader.

The journalist told London's Southwark Crown Court: "This was a broken woman. Her marriage had collapsed in the most dramatic and horrible of circumstances. She was clearly absolutely devastated about it, no doubt about that."

She added: "I got the impression that, despite the way she had been treated by her husband, she was still very much in love with him. It was really a terrible time."

Miss Pryce, a prominent economist, had lunch with Miss Oakeshott at a restaurant called Christopher's in Covent Garden, central London, on March 1 2011, the court heard.

At this meeting Miss Pryce said "slightly under her breath" that Huhne had forced her to take speeding points for him in 2003.

Miss Oakeshott followed up this claim in a series of emails with Miss Pryce in which the two women discussed how The Sunday Times could run a story.

Miss Pryce was furious with Huhne for ending their 26-year marriage in 2010 after the Lib-Dem politician admitted to an affair with Carina Trimingham, a bisexual former aide.

The journalist said that Miss Pryce told her that she had received an official letter out of the blue which said she had been nominated as the driver of her husband's car when it was caught speeding.

The couple had an argument about this, with Huhne allegedly saying he wanted his wife to take his penalty points because he risked losing his driving licence, the court heard.

Miss Oakeshott said: "He had filled the form out, nominated her without any consultation about it and put her in an extremely difficult position. She was understandably very upset about it.

"She did not seem to have a very detailed recollection of these circumstances but she was clear she had filled in the form herself, but had been very, very unhappy about doing so and felt that she had been put into an impossible situation by doing so, and that it had been a fait accompli."

She added: "I was amazed throughout my dealings with Vicky that she was constantly on the verge of tears. It took very little to tip her into a tearful condition.

"It was an extraordinary contrast between a tough successful professional woman wearing a suit and high heels, beautifully presented, but that seemed to be an armour for her. She was very emotional in fact."

Miss Oakeshott said she believed that what Miss Pryce told her was true.

"I didn't feel that you would make something up which would potentially incriminate yourself. And I felt that if you were going to make something up, you would make up something a bit better than that," she said.

The court heard that Miss Pryce discussed other matters with Ms Oakeshott that could have been "damaging or embarrassing" to Huhne, but these were never published and were not specified in court.

Miss Pryce, 60, of Clapham, South London, denies perverting the course of justice and is due to give evidence in her defence this afternoon.